Turkish Mission
Turkish national Savas Karabulut runs the Durban-based Turquoise Harmony Institute, whose stated mission is to foster dialogue and tolerance across religious and cultural divides. Though small, the Turkish organisation hosts events that draw SA religious, political and business leaders. Deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe has attended, and struggle veteran Fatima Meer and KwaZulu Natal finance MEC Ina Cronje are regular patrons.
Together with another Turkish organisation, the Horizon Educational Trust, the institute has also been instrumental in setting up schools in mainly disadvantaged communities, funded by Turkish businessmen abroad. These schools have produced some of the country's top maths and science students, winning awards in Germany.
So what inspired Karabulut, who holds a philosophy master's from Seoul University, where he also taught for a time, to set up base in a country that has no more than 3 000 people of Turkish origin?
The inspiration, says Karabulut (34), is drawn from the Gülen movement, whose founder, Fethullah Gülen, a US-based Turkish activist, was once invited to SA by former president Nelson Mandela.
"The Gülen school of thought is about world peace through dialogue and education, which explains why we have schools in SA," says Karabulut, who grew up in Maras in southern Turkey.
"We believe that, through communication and education, people can be more open to others and more tolerant of each other," he says. (Ironically, Karabulut means black clouds in Turkish and Savas means war.)
The Gülen message was conveyed most recently at a peace conference in Johannesburg which focus ed on women and men whose nonviolent beliefs helped change the course of history. The institute has also introduced an annual ubuntu ceremony aimed at recognising individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to fostering tolerance in their communities.
"We decided to introduce this annual event because the concept of ubuntu guides African societies; it symbolises a humanistic approach to life and appreciation of all individuals in society, valuing them for who they are," explains Karabulut, who arrived here eight months ago after a stint in the US.
It sounds noble, but is the underlying (and ambitious) motive not really to promote Turkish culture and influence, which is the impression you get from the institute's website? For an NGO, the institute seems to have powerful backers, judging by the lavish events it hosts.
Karabulut is quick to acknowledge that though the organisation and its members are driven by their Turkish ethos because they happen to be Turkish, its work is not to promote Turkish culture or nationalism. "Our schools, under the leadership of Goksal Cavdaro, are non secular and, though they offer Turkish as a subject since the teachers are Turkish, this is by choice and is not compulsory."
He says the Turquoise Institute schools strive for academic excellence using the Gülen approach, which means "fostering a love of learning and tolerance of others".
"Our teachers, for example, offer free tuition after school hours, at night or at weekends. We organise study camps, work individually with slow learners and prepare advanced learners to compete internationally to raise the academic bar."
The institute's seven schools around SA are financed by Turkish businessmen abroad. A new school funded by a Turkish businessman based in Denmark is under construction in Durban. School fees range between R7 000 and R25 000 annually, depending on the province, boarding requirements and financial circumstances of the student. In many cases, students who cannot afford the fees are provided with full board and 100% bursaries.
All this seems to have paid off, according to Karabulut, as the schools, which have been going since 2006, had 15 students in the top 200 in this year's national maths olympiad. And one of its two Johannesburg-based schools was recently given the award for best science school in the country.
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